Slow Country
by a tiny cyborg
Summary: Leftovers aren't always that tasty. 2DxNoodle
1. Chapter 1

It was freezing. It was freezing and there was something soft on top of her. It was freezing, there was something soft on top of her, and there was _someone in the fucking room_. The someone's breath was slow, even, and careful. It was like the someone, or something, was sleeping. They couldn't have been sleeping too hard, though. Every now and then their breathing would turn into a quick gasp and she'd hear shifting of positions. They must have been watching over her, guarding her to, ensuring that she she didn't and couldn't escape.  
_What did I do this time?_ The thought ran bitterly through her mind. She'd been kidnapped, beaten, bruised up, and taken advantage of far too many times to know that it wasn't always 'just for laughs'. Hell didn't do thing for shits and giggles most of the time. Dumb lackeys didn't know how to do things for shits and giggles, after all. Considering the grudge Hell had for her, things weren't for shits and giggles in her life anymore. Hell didn't like her. Hell didn't desire her (even if the lackeys did). Hell didn't need some pretty guitar prodigy. Hell only wanted to kill her.  
Yes, Hell just wanted to get rid of her forever.

Knowing that being quiet as possible was key, the girl slipped her foot slowly out of whatever was covering her. She didn't open her eyes. She didn't dare open her eyes in case that noise wake the guard. _Yes, that tiny noise could wake someone_, she reasoned. Deep down, she knew that she was being overly paranoid, but she knew being overly paranoid was better than making little mistakes. Not to mention that one eye felt caked closed with blood and scabs while the other was causing a throbbing sensation throughout her whole head. It hurt like a bitch and she didn't even want to try to open it now. Realizing it was another headache, she cursed herself in her mind. A headache of this proportion-- _2D proportion!_ she laughed in her head-- would slow her down. It would take away from the senses she'd need to escape. It'd make her make a little mistake. It'd make her--  
"Oh dear fucking Hell, that is just cold!" she screamed. Her sneaking foot had finally touched cold, hard floor.

That scream triggered a lot of things to happen at once and then one after another. The first thing that happened was that whomever was in the room woke up and jumped up at her with a scream of "LIL' LOVE!" The next was that she elbowed this person in the face, knocking him right where the sun don't shine, causing him to cry out. She fell off of the bed as she did, her fist now connecting with crotch instead of face. The last that happened in these mere seconds was that someone else had swung the door open the moment she finished screaming. With the door wide open, she could hear alarms going off everywhere, before being quickly shut off.

"Noodle! Baby girl!" Gruff, slow, and filled to the brim with a northern American accent, the voice caused her to stop pounding her fists into her attacker's crotch. She... She recognized the voice! Opening her one good eye, the girl known as Noodle looked towards the voice. Head pounding, vision clearing slowly, the huge figure loomed over her and blocked the doorway entirely.  
"Russel?" The word was little more than a gasp. Her hands raised suddenly, realizing that if Russel was right there, then she must have been attacking--  
"Oh dear god, 2D! 2D! Oh god, 2D! I'm so sorry!" she yelled, climbing quickly off him. 2D sat up, staring at her with a pained grin and tears running down his face. Not from excitement, though. Who'd cry from _excitement_ after getting pummeled in the nuts by a damn ninja girl that had spent the past few years in hell, anyway? No, the sweet singer of the band was crying because his Lil' Love had just given his groin unwanted and painful attention.  
"Lil' love, 's okay. Yew didn'... Ow... know it was me." His heavy accent plus the pain forced his words to come out worse than ever. There was no point in having said anything, though, since the girl had bounded into the arms of the huge, black American. The purple haired girl was sobbing, crying, desperately holding onto him. 2D watched this with a bit of jealousy. The girl had been missing for several years and now she bounds into someone else's arms?  
"Russ! Russ, I've missed you so much, Russ!" 2D came back to reality. Noodle was sobbing into Russel's wide chest, the girl curled up in his arms. Luckily, he was no longer as tall as the huge Plastic Beach manor, but he was still abnormally large. Murdoc had managed to get him into a smaller state, but that really has nothing to do with the story at hand.

"What is going on, Stu-kun? Is there something wrong? Russel-san, should I kill whoever screamed?" A heavy, metallic voice came from the doorway, muffled somewhat by Russel's large frame. Noodle raised her gaze from Russel's chest, peeking over his shoulder.

"...The fuck is that thing?" she all but howled.

She was staring at... _herself_. Well, kind of. This other 'herself' was half clothed and half-skinned, metallic skin poking out from the pulled flesh. Noodle could see whirring gears, hear the soft sound of intense humming, like a computer overheating. Soulless eyes stared up at her. It was a fucking machine!

"Should I kill her?" the mechanical her repeated. It seemed quite unsure of what was going on. All that it's processes knew, the real Noodle assumed, was that 2D had screamed and this new person had beaten him. Now that bloodied up, torn apart girl was in Russel's arms and crying. Surely, this had to be a thing that the mechanical beast had to kill, right?

"Bloody hell... 'ou finally woke up." Another voice Noodle recognized! "No, don't kill 'er, Noodle. Go back to my room so I can finish fixing 'ou up. Damn thing ran away when I 'as tryin'a fix 'er." Murdoc stood in the doorway, admiring the scene. 2D on the ground, somewhat astonished and looking as though the fuck had been beaten out of him; Russel holding the girl who looked like a hot mess; the cyborg copy of their former guitarist seeming hesitant about leaving. Surely, this reunion was not the type to happen everyday.  
"'bout time, really. 'Ou had been out for ages. What, I saved 'er ass... A week ago? Washed up about then, yah?" The Satanist took another sip of his alcohol, staring at the girl. Really, she couldn't be called a girl now. She would be legal now, technically. Nineteen? Twenty? Shit, it had been a long time, he realized. It had been a ridiculously long time since El Manana.

"What do you mean I've been out?" Noodle asked, squirming from Russel's arms. Feeling her head rumble with an ache, she held a hand to her forehead. "Fuck... Ah, 2D, do you have anything for a headache?" _Stupid question. Of course he did!_  
The band was silent for a moment and Murdoc coughed. "Baby girl, don't you say words like that." Russel warned, staring down at the girl. The protective father figure suddenly feeling the same feeling he had once before. How dare his baby girl say something like that!  
"Er, sorry..." Noodle looked down at her feet, feeling dizzy and painful again. _At least Russel-san is the same..._ Her eyes ran over Murdoc, leaning against the doorframe and drinking some kind of bottled alcohol, moving back to 2D who was laying on the floor still.  
_God hope these two still are, too._

**a/n** sorry if it seems confusing. i suck at making sense sometimes. lemme know whatcha think? thanks for reading!~


	2. Chapter 2

"So I just washed up on the shore?" Noodle shoved more food into her mouth. It was disgusting, tasting like melted plastic, but damn it was food. They had set tables and chairs on the beach for a picnic. Perhaps picnic wasn't the correct word, though. It was a whole feast, fit for a king with no taste buds. Hardly edible delights covered every inch of the table. No expense was spared for this occasion. Though Murdoc had griped and bitched about using all their food, he watched with some amusement as the girl stuffed herself with the junk.

"Yeah! Yew was just layin' there when we gah' 'ome!" 2D cried, launching from the chair next to him to grab the girl and hug her again. This had been going on almost every five minutes. 2D would remember that this was the _real_ Noodle and grab onto her, hugging her and squishing his face into her hair or neck or shoulders or anywhere, really. At one point, he grabbed a bit too low and found his face squished onto her chest, placed directly where her boobs were. At that moment, he had noticed that their previously flat chested guitarist had grown some knockers- not big, but enough for him to realize they were there. He had been pulled off from Murdoc and decked soundly by Russel, but he didn't care.  
"Oh, lil' love! I've missed you so much!"

Noodle laughed, prying 2D off. "Oh, D. Let me finish eating, please?" she begged. Her bruised and beaten face turned into a full-fledged pout, causing the singer to ruffle her hair.  
"Aye, of course, my lil' love. I've just missed you so much!"  
"We all did, D. But before we get re-acquainted, there's probably a lot Noodle wants to know."

All eyes turned to the girl. She looked up, gulping visibly as a large chunk of something- salmon or sardines or maybe chicken- ran down her throat. "Thank you, Russel-san... I'm just very curious as to how I managed to get from there to here." A scowl placed itself on her features. "Last I remember was being held captive in a pub. They had their way with me and then one knocked me out." Noodle shrugged, then turned a fierce shade of red as 2D gasped audibly. Russel pounded his fists into the table, knocking over a few plates as he heard what they had done to her. "Look, settle down. I tried my best to fight them off, but I did get caught sometimes. Always managed to get free, though... Somehow. Don't worry about it."

"Yew... yew mean my lil' love's no longer... pure?" 2D shrieked in terror. He grabbed onto Noodle, holding tightly again. "Oh, lil' love! I'm sowwy none of us got 'here in time!" he cried. Noodle didn't push him away this time, as she had done each time before.  
"D, I wouldn't have wanted any of you to go there," she mumbled softly. Placing the salmon/chicken/sardine piece onto the plate, she petted 2D's hair softly. "Really. I did it to help the band. I don't regret it."  
2D looked up. Before him sat this girl he felt like he had never seen before. Mature, bruised, battered, having seen things no person ever should... His normally slow mind reeled. She didn't want them to go looking for her? Did she not want to come home? _Wait, better ask that one._  
"So you didn't want to come home?"  
The silence overtook the beach. Even the waves seemed to silence. Noodle looked at 2D, brow furrowing. Before she managed to open her mouth, though, Murdoc answered for her.  
"No, Faceache. She didn't want us to risk OUR hides to save hers. Stupid, really. What made you think you could take them on?"  
Noodle glared at the satanist. "Nothing, except that I rather myself dead than you three. What's in this food, anyway? Russel-san, I thought you were a good cook!" A desperate attempt to lighten the mood and change the subject. It worked, though, seeing as the group continued their meal on the hideous though charming Plastic Beach on a good note. - "Oh, 2D?"  
The blank minded fool of a singer looked up at Noodle. "Yes, my lil' love?" He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer. How he'd missed the little Axe Princess! That bubbly personality, her tangents in Japanese, her intense love of video games... He had missed her so much. 2D continuously pulled her close only to ensure that she wasn't some dream. He had to make sure she wasn't just some fake creature that had taken her form. _No,_ he'd tell himself,_ everything is real. Everything is real. Noodle is very real._  
"Is there a bathroom I can use?" Noodle, her face smushed into 2D's torso, had to repeat her question multiple times to get an answer. 2D, snapping back into reality, looked down at her as he pulled away.  
"Wot? Oh! Yes! There's a baffroom right above my room. Yew can go there, if yew want. Did Muds even give yew a room yet?" Noodle shook her head in response. "Well then you can sta- No, wait. The whale's still there."  
"The whale?"  
"Yeah, uh... Muds got a whale trained to stay by my room... He didn't want me escaping."  
"Es- what? Escaping?"  
"Yeah, lil love! 'E didn' wan' me escapin' this stupid place! But now that you're home, lil' love, I don' wanna escape!" 2D wrapped his arms around Noodle, squishing her into his chest once more.  
"What... 2D, he forced you to stay here?"  
"Well, yeah. I didn' wanna do the album so he made me."

Noodle looked at 2D, more amused than dumbfounded. Even if her several year absence, nothing had changed. 2D was still oblivious to what went on around him and the severity of some situations. Murdoc was still batshit crazy. Russel was... "Wait, where had Russel been? I couldn't get much out of him tonight..." A sad look placed itself upon the young woman's face. The man standing in front of her grabbed her chin with his fingers, placing a kiss on her forehead to cheer her up.  
The spot he kissed tingled as thought it had just been shocked. Her body felt warm, suddenly. _What the hell...?_

"Russ... well, 'e went off. Del's gone, you know that. He just went fuckin' crazy because of it and the loss of you, lil' love. Murdoc didn't tell us it was a hoax for a while. We all thought you was really dead, lil' love. He took some time off. Murdoc apparently didn't tell him about the new album so he swam here. He arrived just a few days before you did. Coincidence, right?" Failing to mention that he had also grown thousands of times bigger from all the waste and toxic waters, 2D shrugged slightly. "We all wen' a bit mad wiffout you, lil' love."

Noodle felt her eyes tearing up. She, for the first time in a long time, watched 2D as he told the story somewhat uncomfortably. He shifted like he was nervous, rubbing his arms and keeping his darkened stare away from her.

_He's still so handsome!_ She noticed this with a slight turning of her stomach. Something about his sickening thinness, his terrifying eyes, his blue hair... Something about him was too attractive. Surely she knew all along he was, but watching as he moved about awkwardly, she felt her stomach tug at her skin. It'd been years since she saw her beloved best friend, her beloved bandmate...  
It'd been years, so why didn't the feelings she had had for the singer disappeared yet? Those years in hell did nothing to make her childhood crush dissipate. Scratching her arm, Noodle looked at him shyly. He was so handsome and just as caring as always. Though she wouldn't admit it, she was enjoying the attention she was getting from 2D now that she had returned. The attention from evil doers and lackeys, the sex from them, watching her humiliate herself while naked... nothing compared to the attention he was giving her now. It caused butterflies, tugging, pulling, all from her attacking stomach.  
It was quite humiliating but satisfying, nonetheless.

A light cough from her drew his attention back to Noodle. She was a fierce shade of red, now looking awkward and staring at the ground herself. "Right... Well, D, can you just take me to the bathroom? I really wanna wash up..."  
_And wash these fucking thoughts out of my head!_

**a/n** nothing ever makes sense to me when i write it, sheesh. chapter 3 is almost done. will be from 2D's POV. it's about the events leading up to all this to make sense of it. chapter 4 will be the same, though with Noodle. thanks for reading!~ 


	3. Chapter 3

**2D's point of view**  
anything in italics is a flashback or thoughts.

It had been a long time since I had seen my lil' love. It had been even longer since she jumped out of that box. It had been a long time since she learned to ride a bike, learned to skate, first sang with me...  
But mostly, it'd been a long time since I had fallen in love with her.

See, these things don't just happen overnight. It had been years that my feelings clouded together to turn into what they are. Over the time of her absence, my love for my lil' love had gotten stronger. I hadn't meant it to, really. I thought they'd have been gone by now. Watching that damn android react every day, doing Murdoc's command every day, it made me miss her more and love her more.

"Jesus, I'm fucked up..." Popping two more pills into my mouth, I slouched back against the wall as I swallowed. Noodle had begged me not to leave the room for fear something happened. I could hear the shower running, hear her singing to herself in a cheery way. She was wiping away that horrid, heavy stench of hell and was transforming herself fully into the flowery smelling, fun loving girl she had been before.

Man, I wanted to see her naked, though.

"Stop with the thoughts, 2D!" I grumbled, grabbing a pillow and forcing it onto my face. I immediately regretted that, though, since the damn thing smelled of rotting fish, must, and just general disgust. Shoving it away, I heard Noodle drop something in the bathroom. A loud "fuck!" brought my thoughts directly back to the naked, wet girl who was in the bathroom next to me.

She had just gotten back and I already wanted to fuck her? How messed up was that! The hell was wrong with me! This was _Noodle_. Innocent, sweet Noodle that had just come back from a traumatizing event. I scowled, closed my eyes, and felt another headache come on.

-years ago  
_ "Noooooodle!"  
I looked up. There was Noodle, her little face bright red from a sunburn. She was running around with no pants on. Again. For probably the millionth time this month. She was young so she didn't understand what she was doing was considered wrong, so it made me cute and funny. _Murdoc must think he looks cute and funny when he walks around with no pants on,_ my mind mused. Noodle's tiny hand beat onto my shoulder, her shrill voice yelling near me._

_"2D-san!"  
A smile spread. It was cute to hear her call me things like 'san' and other weird Japanese words. Noodle pointed to the bottle of aloe I was smearing on my legs. It took a minute to realize what she wanted, but I ended up figuring it out._

That was kind of the first really close moment I had had with Noodle. She was so young! Had it really been almost seven years now...?

-El Manana Video Shoot  
_ "NOODLE."  
The scream came from me before I could even really comprehend what was going on. I stared at the burning island, floating down as the planes attacked her. Russel stood beside me, a look of pure terror on his face. Murdoc turned away, something like a hiss coming from him.  
"NOODLE. WHAT THE FUCK ARE YE DOIN'? SOMEONE GO 'ELP 'ER."  
I was screaming. Words didn't even form after my request, though. Everyone just stood there, watching, staring as the windmill began to sink faster and faster. I wasn't sure what I was doing anymore, but I grabbed Murdoc's turned shoulders and forced him to face me.  
"What's... happening..."  
"Noodle isn't going to make it," he sneered around a smirk.  
That was the only time I had hit Murdoc with the intention of truly harming him. How could he be so calm! How could he seem so happy about this! The bassist reeled back slightly from the punch. Wiping away blood from his lip, he growled dangerously. I didn't care, though. I had taken off, running towards the windmill.  
"Lil' love! My lil' love! I'm coming! Please, please wait!"  
I don't remember anything after that because someone knocked me out with something sharp, though._

A shiver ran up my spine. That was the worst day of my life. Watching my own lil' love fall helplessly and quickly to what I thought was her death... It was traumatizing. It made my headaches worse. It made the pills taste better, though. It was the one memory I never wanted to think about again. But Noodle was back now, so I didn't have to!

-day before the El Manana video  
_"Noodle-roo!" I called. The girl popped up behind me, scaring me out of my wits. She climbed onto the couch, snuggling close to me. Her eyes were red, her tiny body shaking slightly.  
"Ey, lil' love. Yew been cryin'?"  
"Yeah. I hurt my elbow. That's it!" A trademark full-toothed grin was shot my way.  
I felt my face get hot. I'd been having these weird thoughts lately... Like was any of this real or- Wait, no, that wasn't my thought. That was my game's thoughts. My thoughts were about the Japanese guitarist. She was still young, maybe way too young, but I was still developing a crush on her. Perhaps I was some creepy old man like Murdoc would tease me...  
The girl wrapped her arms around my waist. Knowing she wanted some affection and attention from her best mate, I set my controller down and hugged onto her. "Yew really sure yerr okay, lil' love?" I asked cautiously. The girl just nodded her head into my chest. After a few minutes, I felt my shirt grow wet with her tears. She looked up at me, her eyes looking so hurt and broken and sad. There's not enough adjectives in the world to describe that look.  
It was heartbreaking.  
_  
I knew she was lying and I hate myself every day for not pushing it more. Maybe I could have stopped her from going along with Murdoc's plan... Yeah, it was a plan. We found out it was a plan months later, though. Six months, almost, of Russel and I being so heartbroken we couldn't do a damn thing. Murdoc wanted to keep it a secret...  
That's about when we went our separate ways. Me to my flat, Russel to his home, Murdoc staying in that damned Kong Studio. I spent so many lonely days wishing I could I have stopped her. It drove me mad. It's what drove me into myself, really.

-some time after the El Manana video  
_"Nah, mate... Look, she's in Hell. No, literally. She got captured and..."  
"Then we have to go find her!" I screamed into the phone. Murdoc was on the other end, laughing his disgusting face off at me.  
"No, Faceache. It ain't that easy. She'll get herself out. Hopefully."_ Click._  
He had hung up._

Knowing Noodle was actually alive didn't make anything better. Her absence from my life had had me loving her more, but now this? To know she probably wasn't going to come back even though she was here? It was like losing her all over again. To hear him say that I couldn't do anything was just as bad, too.

I spent all my time cooped up in my flat. I smoke, I drank, I didn't do much of anything else. How the hell I survived is a miracle, really. I was lost in the thoughts of her. After a while, I realized I was falling for someone who wasn't even there. Someone who I didn't know if they'd ever come back.  
I ended up here the day that I made that realization. I was staring out the window and then _BAM!_ my head was against the glass.

So many years in this place. So many years without Noodle... Then suddenly, there she was. Laying in the disgusting sand of the Plastic Beach. An inflatable boat lay next to her, punctured with bullet holes. She was out cold, but she wasn't dead.  
Noodle wasn't dead.  
Noodle, my love... My lil' love Noodle.  
She wasn't dead!

That's when the feelings all came back. Scattered the apathy, ruined what I had worked so hard to do...

"2D-san?" Noodle peaked her head around the door of the bathroom, watching me carefully. A sigh escaped and she relaxed. Maybe she was worried I would be gone? Maybe she was worried that I would leave her, too!  
_Of course she would be upset if you left, dolt. She likes you as a **brother**_.  
"Yes, lil' love?" I smiled brightly at her, sticking my tongue through the gap in my teeth. She giggled, amused at this little motion.  
"2D-san, do you have any clothes I can borrow. Mine are... bad."  
"Aye, sure, lil' love!"  
"And 2D-san?"  
My brow crinkled slightly. Her voice sounded somewhat sad. Her eyes focused on the floor and a sigh escaped from her little lips.  
"Stu-Pot... Will you let me sleep with you tonight? I'm afraid of what will happen if I sleep alone."

**a/n** okay. i think this ties up to what happened in the first two chapters pretty well. next will be Noodle-roo's POV on what happened. story will be back to total story mode after that, though!  
derp, edited it because i found some mistakes.


	4. Chapter 4

The water was extremely cold. I kept adjusting the temperature, desperate for some warmth. It took a few moments of cold water attacking my skin for me to realize why it was as cold as it seemed: I had spent years in _hell_. Of course everything was going to be cold now!  
Hissing softly, I stepped half out of the shower. 2D had shown me to this room, which had turned out to be quite the disgusting place, to be honest. He tried hard to clean it up and threw a few of the dead fish away, but it didn't help much. For whatever reason, though, the bathroom was perfectly clean. The tiles sparkled with the reflected light, the walls were a soft white color, the little bathroom didn't smell of rotten fish and trash... It was quite nice. I tried to ask him why it was in such grand condition, but he just blushed and turned away. Guess he had something to do with it, judging from his attempted modesty.

The water finally felt like it was a decent temperature after a few minutes of standing only halfway under the water. Goosebumps covered my skin. Rubbing my arms, I sighed quite loudly. It was weird, being back here. It had been a really long time. It had been far too long, perhaps.  
Moving back under the water, I stood there staring at the wall for a little bit. I felt out of place. I was different, there was no denying it anymore. After all that I had seen and done in Hell... Who wouldn't be? Attacked, fighting to get back, trying to keep my sanity...  
Rubbing shampoo into my hair, I wondered if my sanity really was still there. After all, I hadn't even been here for a full week and I was already ooh la la'ing over 2D. It was like I was a child all over again.

"A child all over again," I muttered. Great, talking to myself now? I _was_ going crazy! With a sigh, I began to rinse out the stink of Hell from my hair. Rotten eggs, dirty metal... My hair smelled weird. _I_ smelled weird, actually. Hopefully this wash would get all this smell off of me.  
And all these terrible thoughts out of my head.

2D. 2D. Stuart Pot. I had missed him a lot. I had missed him way too much. So often I had thought of him, missed him, wanted to come home. For the first year or two, I'd cry almost every night to have him back. While my island was crashing, I cried because I didn't want to leave him. I had to act scared, but inside I was sad. Sure, I wanted a break, but I didn't want a break completely from them. When Murdoc said I'd be off to the Maldives, I thought it'd really happen.  
Guess when it comes down to it, no-one ever thought or thinks they'd be dragged into hell. Judging from who I used to hang around with, it wasn't surprising, though. Murdoc was known to bring trouble. That stupid demon boy...

I stepped out of the shower, sniffing my hair. Ugh. It still smelled rotten. That horrible metallic smell wouldn't leave. I'd washed it three or four times already. I'd bathed a few times more. I still couldn't get the scent of Hell off of me.  
A thought tightened my stomach into tons of knots. _I'll never really get any of Hell off of me._ I'd stink forever. The memories would be stuck forever. That was just the worst thing imaginable. Life wouldn't be worth living if I always stunk and got jumpy after everything. What had Russel-san once taught me about? There was something about soldiers after wars, going crazy. I couldn't think of what it was called. Everything in my brain was going too fast.

Groaning, I washed my hair with the flowery shampoo again. I scrubbed myself harder while bathing. I counted the fourth time washing my hair since I started again, fifth time bathing. Everything about me still felt dirty. I felt tears come to my eyes and warm my face as they trickled down. Good lord, being in Hell would be easier than this will be, wouldn't it? Being chased, having a bounty, being attacked, being raped... All of that would be easier than having to face my old friends now that I had changed.

Looking down, I realized I had been scrubbing a little too hard. My skin had red lines where my fingernails scratched at it on accident. There were strands of hair on the walls and starting to clog the shower drain. Luckily, the water was no longer running that murky red it had been earlier. That had been absolutely unnerving, looking down and seeing what I thought was blood.  
Speaking of blood, was 2D still in the room? Once more, my stomach tightened. 2D had _better_ be in that room! He promised me he'd stay. Promised me he wouldn't leave me. _If he left me, I'm pretty I'll break down_, I mused. After all, it wasn't much like 2D to break a promise, was it? Perhaps he has changed as much as I have. Only time would honestly tell if he was the man I had accidentally fallen for.

Stepping out and wiping the mirror dry, I smiled at myself. For the first time in years, I looked and felt clean. I had managed the bare necessities in Hell, brushing my teeth once a week if I was lucky and bathing a couple of times a month, but it wasn't too clean there. What could you expect from a bunch of damned souls and killers, though?  
Brushing my teeth repeatedly, I let my thoughts wander to 2D again. Hopefully he _hadn't_ changed. Hopefully Murdoc hadn't tortured him! Hopefully Russel never clobbered him too much. Hopefully...

By the time I finished brushing several times and blow drying my hair, I had made up my mind. I didn't want to sleep alone (for fear of being kidnapped again, I reasoned) and I wanted time alone with 2D. I could bring these two together to make some grand comeback, couldn't I? The man wouldn't deny me, his lil' love!  
Realizing I had no clothes, I wrapped the towel tightly around me and let my embarrassment settle. I'd have to ask him for some clothes _and_ to sleep with him... Awkward.  
_But that's okay!_ I told myself repeatedly. It was going to be _okay_. My eye was hurting from the wash and water, but I was feeling clean now. I was feeling good. Dammit, I was feeling _lucky_.

"2D-san?" I poked my head out the door and watched him. He turned to me, slowly, smiling that big goofy grin he was so famous for. Suddenly, my stomach caught up in my throat and I began to panic.  
_What happens if he says no?_  
"Yes, lil' love?" He stuck his tongue through his teeth and I couldn't help but giggle like a child.  
"2D-san, do you have any clothes I can borrow. Mine are... bad."  
"Aye, sure, lil' love!"  
"And 2D-san?"  
Just like I said in _19-2000_, 'here you go!' I let in a deep breath and after a moments pause, I could feel myself getting sadder. I felt sad, suddenly, preparing for any possible rejection.  
"Stu-Pot... Will you let me sleep with you tonight? I'm afraid of what will happen if I sleep alone."

He only looked at me and smiled. "Of course, lil' love. Anything for my lil' love."

**a/n** SORRY I TOOK SO LONG WITH THIS CHAPTER BTW. i've been hanging around on subeta too much and somehow ended up with a girlfriend. (-looks up, smiles- hi, honey!) i decided last minute to take a change with this chapter and show nood's internal conflict and offer slight glimpses to what happened in Hell instead of concentrating on the past like 2D needed to do. THE NEXT CHAPTER SHALL BE ACTUAL CONTENT. i like dragging things along.


	5. Chapter 5

"You fucker! You sod! You blood moron!"  
At first, the yelling didn't wake Noodle. It took almost ten minutes of them fighting for Noodle to open her eyes. The TV landing to the ground with a heavy _thump_ was what did her in, though. The girl's eyes shot open and her hand flew to under her pillow. Finding no gun, she tensed, waiting to see what would happen next. There was only silence, though.  
It took a moment of that silence for Noodle to realize where she was. Instead of hell, she was in the freezing cold of 2D's room. She had begged him to let her sleep in his room last night. She hadn't wanted to sleep alone, for fear something happened.  
Turning to see who had caused all the commotion, she wasn't surprised to see 2D laying in a lump next to the TV and Murdoc standing over him. The older man stood up and adjusted his shirt, scoffing gently.  
"Sodding moron."  
"What's going on?" Noodle murmured. Sure, she should have been used to this sort of thing, but after being away for so long, she figured _something_ should have changed.  
"Nuffink, Lil' Love," 2D smiled at her, standing. His eyebrows moved down and he groaned, holding his back. He was getting far too old for these beatings! Wasn't Murdoc getting a little old, too?  
Noodle frowned. It was never 'nothing' with Murdoc. Grumpily, Noodle turned her gaze to Murdoc. The Satanist only gave her what should have been a charming smile. Shaking her head, the girl sighed. "I'm not stupid. Is it because I slept in here? I didn't want to get... taken away again."  
Murdoc scoffed once more. "Taken away? Like this dullard could fucking do a thing if you got taken away again!"  
"Thass not true, Muds," 2D mumbled. "I coulda protected 'er enuff."  
"Enough?" Murdoc yelled, grabbing 2D by the neck of his shirt. "Enough? Enough isn't good enough!" The man seemed completely enraged now. Noodle shrunk back into the bed, watching the scene unfold. She knew Murdoc wouldn't hurt 2D _too_ much, so she was fine.  
Well, fine until she noticed that ridiculous copy of her standing in the room.  
"Should I kill him, boss?" The cyborg's fake face let a dangerous grin cross it. There was a moment of silence again. Murdoc seemed to be contemplating the idea, 2D shaking in his hands.  
"You're not killing a damn thing!" Noodle shouted. "Murdoc, let him go!"  
"Should I kill her, too, boss?" The cyborg gave her a once over. It didn't realize that she was it and it was... no, it wasn't her. She'd never listen to Murdoc like that, that was for sure.  
"I'll rip you into pieces before I let you kill me," Noodle hissed. Murdoc set a hand on the Cyborg's shoulder and pulled her back. The girl stood and left from the bed, standing a yard or so from Murdoc. "Now put 2D down before I let loose on you." she snapped.  
The bassist shoved the poor blue haired man back as he let him go. He growled dangerously, looking from Noodle to 2D. "Whatever the fuck it is you two did last night, I don't care. But I won't have you," he pointed his finger at 2D, "Corrupting our fucking guitarist now that she's back. Especially since she just _got_ back, dullard. You can go and fuck whoever you want but if I find that you even touched Noodle again, I _will_ kill you."  
Noodle, 2D, and even the Cyborg just stared at Murdoc. The man left the room briskly, screaming for the metallic girl to get him some rum. An awkward silence filled the air of 2D's room.

Finally, even though Murdoc was long gone, 2D managed his rebuttal: "BUT WE DIDN'T EVEN 'AVE SEX!"

**a/n **shooorrttt. it's because the next one is longer and i just wanted to set it up a bit. TRALALALA, i took forever!~


	6. Chapter 6

It'd been a few good months since Noodle's return. All was well at the Plastic Beach manor, save for the pirate attacks and few demons that seemed to want Noodle back. Every few days there'd be some sort of fight that went on, but otherwise, all was well.  
Well, on the outside, at least.

"Lil' love?"  
"Yes, 2D-san?" Noodle looked up at 2D, pointing her gun to the ground. She had taken to carrying her beloved Tommy Submachine gun around with her nowadays. The man looked wearily at the weapon. Noodle shook her head, shrugging. "I'm not going to walk around unprotected."  
She was sitting outside of Big Rick Black's Music Shack, standing guard as Russel played around in the place. He had taken to cleaning up the little shack and turn it into his own house, not able to take the constant bickering of the 2D and Murdoc anymore.  
"You okay, Noodle girl?" the large American called. He filled up almost the whole doorway as he stood, having come check on her. "Oh, 'D. What brings you here?"  
"I wan'ed to talk to Noodle. You know, in private."  
Russel eyed 2D. Noodle had been avoiding him since the incident with Murdoc. She had begun confiding in him, much to his happiness, just like the old times. Turning to look at the girl, she shrugged, adjusting her red and white romper.  
"It's fine, Russ. I'll yell if I want you to come kill him. Better yet," Noodle held up the gun, pointing it just to the left of 2D, "I can kill him myself."  
Russel snickered at 2D's terrified look. His eyes became the trademark fear-white, the poor man shaking in his skin. It was almost sad that this 19 year old girl could cause him to nearly shit himself. Knowing that Noodle could take care of herself, Russel disappeared back into the depths of Big Rick Black's.  
"Whatcha wanted to talk about?" The girl bounced from her heel to the tips of her toes, basically mesmerizing 2D as she did. The movement was driving his mad because it was so easily repetitive. Her hair would bounce. The mask she had on her head, the one she refused to get rid of for whatever reason, would slip forward a little each time. Her romper would move slightly up her legs as she'd lean back... 2D was being driven mad! He wanted to stop her. He'd been doing this for the months that she had been avoiding him. Those little repetitive movements. He'd just be taken in and he'd lose track of everything he was doing. Half the time, he'd even stop breathing.  
"Stuaaaaaart," Noodle called. He was staring at her with such an intenseness that she was getting worried. She'd never seen the man look so concentrated in his whole life. Even when they'd be on stage, he'd get distracted easily. Checking his phone, zoning out on stage... It was so weird! "2D!" she called again, hoping to snap him out of his concentration now.  
"Er, sorry, wot was I 'ere for?" 2D stared at her. The girl shrugged, reminding him that he has asked her to talk. "Oh, right! Sorry, darlin'." He flashed her a smile, taking a seat in the dirty sand. "Er, lil' love... Are yew mad at me?"  
Noodle looked slightly shocked. A guilty feeling washed over her and she slid down against the shack. "No, 'D, I'm not. Is this because I've been avoiding you?"  
"Well... yea." 2D dug his feet into the sand, avoiding looking at her. "It is. I jus' didn' wan' yew mad at me, yew know? I was glad that yew were back but then yew just... Stopped talking to me. It's jus' weird havin' yew back, lil' love, when you won't even really look at me."  
The girl took a deep breath. "I wasn't ignoring you, I swear. I just didn't want to get you into anymore trouble. There's that creepy cyborg and I just didn't want you getting hurt."  
"Lil love, yew know he used to beat the shit outta me in the first place," 2D grumbled. Noodle laughed, pulling her legs to her chest. The singer noticed she was covered in sand now, feeling somewhat grossed out that she could stand it. He was being driven crazy with just touching the disgusting stuff. "Wait, you're worried about the Cyborg?"  
Noodle shrugged. "It's creepy, having a second me. Murdoc keeps it away from me, but it's still a threat." The girl scowled. "It's dangerous. Murdoc's crazy. Sure it's great to have it around to help fight, but it's just weird. It's like you all replaced me."  
2D stared at Noodle now. "Replaced you? Aww, lil' love, you know nothing could replace you!" The man scooted over to Noodle, wiping sand off of her as he took his seat next to her. _She's really, really soft._  
"Sure, nothing _can_," she giggled, "But it's just weird. She's just not right. Murdoc's too dangerous of a person to have created something that would stay... okay. Especially since he's looking for those pieces to that book. It's just not right, 'D." Noodle shivered as 2D touched her shoulders, wiping sand away. She hadn't even noticed she'd gotten so much on her while she had been playing. The stuff stuck to your skin like it was glass shoved in. "Uhm, 2D?"  
The man didn't answer. He was too busy wiping the sand away that was on her face and thinking. Yes, thinking. Yes, coherent thoughts on the subject of Noodle thinking she had been replaced. It was just heartbreaking to him. Nothing could have replaced his lil' love. The cyborg didn't play video games with her. The cyborg didn't sing DARE for him. The cyborg didn't cry and cling to him, didn't ask him for advice, didn't have him play. The cyborg wasn't anything like Noodle. He wasn't in love with the cyborg, "but I fink I'm in love wiff the real Noodle."  
Everything froze for a moment. Inside Big Rick Black's, no sound was heard. Russel had even stopped moving as the absent minded singer spoke up. 2D's hand continued to wipe sand off of Noodle. It was as if he hadn't even realized he'd said anything aloud. After a moment of silence, her staring at him, him never even looking to catch eye contact, she shifted. 2D pulled his hand back, smiling at her.  
"Sumfink wrong, lil' love?"  
Noodle only pushed herself up and dusted herself off a bit more. "No, 2D. I just need to go patrol again. I'm sorry. I'll come back in a little bit." Forcing a smile, the girl slunk away, shoulder her gun haphazardly. Russel watched as she walked off, leaving 2D smiling happily. Did he not realize what was going on? The black man sighed, shaking his head. This was just getting too complicated.

_"But I fink I'm in love wiff the real Noodle."_  
"In love?" Murdoc's green hands slammed down onto the war table. He hissed dangerously, turning to the cyborg. "Do something to fix this! Do something right now!"  
The cyborg only smiled it's dangerous smile and moved out of the secret lair. Its footsteps were heavy and loud, but it knew that no-one was around. They were all outside. She made her way across the Plastic Beach manor and stopped in front of the door.  
"Noo-dle's. Ruh-oom. Don... Don... Don't... Ent. Air. Don't enter. Noodle's Room, don't enter."  
That slick, disgusting smile Murdoc was famous for slid over her own face. She pulled the knob open and disappeared into the room.  
"Good girl, cyborg. Good girl."

_I tried to be a charmer, but I got a bit hopeless instead.  
- 'Rockit'_

**a/n** sorry i took ages! go blame my girlfriend. it's her fault. i swear. here's two chapters AND PLOT MOVEMENT, FINALLY. i'll try to wrap it up within the next two weeks. damn siblings are taking classes at the park and so i'm stuck with nothing to do for two hours. expect plenty of little stories, especially since i have a few new ideas for 'hip albatross' and a new _diiirrrttyyy_ fanfic.  
thanks for reading!


	7. Chapter 7

**a/n** since my scrunched little paragraphs were making it a bit difficult for a few to read, i've taken on a new ~sep-arrrr-ating the scenes~ style. :p enjoy!

"Russ?" The knock on the door startled the black man. He had been lost in thought for hours, banging away on his drums. Thankful he had finally taken a break for his aching arms to hear Noodle, he opened the door. The sight he was greeted with wasn't exactly the one he wanted to see, though.

"Baby girl? What's wrong?"

"Russ!" the girl threw herself into his arms, sobbing. "Russ, all my stuff is cut up! Everything in my room is destroyed!"

* * *

"Noodle, wots gotten inta yew?" 2D pulled his arm away from the girl. Noodle simply turned to stare at him, her eyes wild and excited. "Why're yew so excited to go onto tha beach? I thought you didn' like it cause it was so nasty." He gave her a questioning look. The girl only shrugged and smiled brightly. Sure, the blue-haired singer was excited to see the girl happy. Sure, he was excited that they were finally going to spend time alone. Sure, he was just plain excited that his lil' love was finally going to be around him again.

But that didn't mean he wasn't confused. It wasn't even the normal 2D-level of confusion. He was the 'I don't understand women' level of confused that was only worsened by the headache that was coming on. The poor man let himself be dragged along by Noodle, who still hadn't said a word to him. She'd just smile brightly and press a finger to her lips when he asked anything. He still didn't know where he was going!  
"Noodle, can we slow down? 'm getting a head-ech..."

Noodle turned and let out a sigh. She shrugged gently, looking from him to the ground. "Fine. I just wanted to bring you to a special spot. I planned all this stuff for us to do today. I wanted to make up for not hanging out with you lately..."

2D immediately felt terrible. She had done a bunch of stuff for _him_? So it was supposed to be a surprise! It certainly explained her quiet personality and why it was such a rush. "Aw, love! 'M sorry! We can jus' go. 'm sorry," he cheerfully told her. The excited girl let out a squeal and grabbed 2D's hand again. Her grip was tight, but he figured it was only because she was happy. He was, too, to be honest. His little Noodle was finally going to spend time with him after avoiding him for all these days!

* * *

"I'm not sure what happened." Noodle picked up a scrap of clothing and sniffled. "The new stuff you guys bought me. My bed. My wallpaper... Everything."

Russel sighed. "It's okay, love. We can just buy you new stuff. Promise." He pressed a large hand onto her head and messed her hair a little. "We've just got to clean everything up now, girl. At least none of your... er... guns... were broken." The large American picked up the gun that had floated onto shore with her after they found her. It was completely destroyed, thanks to the water flooding it and little pieces of trash getting too stuck, but she had kept it anyway.

Russel set it down, turning to Noodle once more. She was still crying, little legs pulled up to her chest and her face placed on her knees. A blank stare covered her face and the man suddenly felt horrible. His poor baby girl was crying. How come he hadn't heard anything? If he hadn't been so self-absorbed he probably would have heard whoever it was enter Noodle room.

"It was that stupid other me," Noodle mumbled. Russel jumped slightly, startled by her voice. He had yet again been lost in his own thoughts. "She... It... It doesn't like me. I don't know why. It just doesn't. It glares at me. It would sometimes follow me while I was on patrol."

"Baby girl," Russel sighed. Taking a seat next to her, the bed groaning under the weight, he wrapped an arm around her. She laid her head against him, a sad frown still on her face. "Baby girl, it always glares. It keeps following you because Murdoc orders it to. He wants to make sure you're okay. As much of a crazy bastard as Murdoc is, he would never make it do something like this."

"Yeah, I'd _neva_ make it do somethin' like this, Noodle." Murdoc stood in the doorway, observing the damage. He frowned, setting his glass of some brown-ish liquid on Noodle's night table and picking up a shredded shirt. "Especially since I spent too much on these fucking clothes." Growling, he threw it onto the floor again. "I guess we'll have to buy you everything again. What a waste of money..."

"But if it wasn't her, who was it? You wouldn't waste the money. Russel wouldn't do this to me," Noodle looked up at Russel who shook his head. "2D... 2D _couldn't_ do this." Murdoc raised an eyebrow at her with this statement. Couldn't? "She's the only who could!"

"No, she isn't. Pirates got onto us a few hours ago. There were three or four and they were trying doors. Guess they ripped your stuff up. I didn't alert anyone because the cyborg took care of them. She's off buying you new clothes, by the way," Murdoc hissed now. He seemed to be annoyed with Noodle, though she wasn't sure why. Like she could have known pirates had gotten onto the island! "That stupid thing can't do much without me telling it to, you hear? So quit being a baby and blaming it."

"Murdoc, be nice. She's upset," Russel snapped. The bassist simply rolled his eyes. Picking up his drink, he left the room without another word. Russel shook his head, hugging Noodle closer to him. "See, baby girl? The cyborg is going to get you new clothes. It didn't do anything. It's all right." Kissing her forehead, he stood. "Come on. We can go get some trash bags and put this stuff in an extra room. We might find some use for all this cloth later."  
Noodle nodded slightly. "Sure. I... I just don't understand. Why did they tear my stuff up? Why didn't they steal anything, Russ? It just makes no sense. None at all. It was that cyborg and I know it was, whether Murdoc says it was or wasn't." The purple-haired girl growled slightly at the thought of that stupid cyborg. It was going to pay for trashing all her stuff. It was _definitely_ going to pay.

* * *

"Wow, Noodle!" 2D smiled brightly at the girl. Noodle and him were standing on a section of grass and sand that wasn't dirtied. There was a picnic blanket set out, a basket laying on it, and a beach ball right next to it. It looked like it was a _normal_ beach!

"I got Murdoc to buy some high-grade fake grass. It's almost like it's real! Everything is still fake but it's almost as good, right? I even had Russel help me cook. It didn't come out too well but it's still edible I swear. I made a bunch of stuff, too! Desserts, dinners, and I brought some alcohol!" Noodle sang out the last word as she pulled out a bottle of what seemed to be some very expensive champagne. "I hope you like everything. It took a lot of convincing to get Murdoc to do all this."

2D was speechless. He stared at everything, taking it all in. This was one of the first times he had actually felt like he _liked_ the beach. Everything looks gorgeous. The food smelled delicious. The beach was ready and waiting for them to play. Today, he knew, was going to be an amazing time with Noodle. Maybe if they waited until later to crack open the champagne, he'd even have a chance to tell her how he felt.

His black holes for eyes watched Noodle as she excitedly bounced around. She seemed so excited to be spending the day with him, too.

_I can't believe she wen' through this much trubble... She musta kissed Murdoc's butt to the limits. There's no way that she coulda just gotten 'im to say yes!_ Lost in his thoughts, the poor fellow was startled when Noodle called his name and waved her hand in front of his face. "Hellooooo!" she sang out to him, attempting to get a response. 2D grinned brightly at her.

"Yes, lil' love? Sowwy, I was day dreamin'."

"I asked if you wanted to go swimming, Stu!"

"The whale's not in there?"

"Naw. I had Murdoc make it stay on the other side. Don't worry, 'D. It's fine. I made sure everything was going to be perfect!" Noodle bounced ahead of him, pulling off her clothes off to show off a red and white bathing suit. 2D, caught up in staring as she toed the water carefully, was a bit brain dead at the moment. Her sudden lack of clothes had caused his brain to simply malfunction and a few other certain bodily functions to over function. He stared at the girl, before realizing something.

"I don't got my bavving suit!" he called out to her. The girl turned and shrugged.  
"Just wear your skivvies! You've got that, right?"

"Erm..." Checking to make sure he had in fact worn underwear today, 2D shrugged. "But, isn't it gonna be awk-werd?" He added an extra hard 'd' to the end of the word. Noodle only shrugged at him and winked. Brain exploding once more, poor 2D pulled his shorts off and slowly moved closer to her. He could feel the cool sea breeze. He could smell Noodle's perfume. He couldn't see much through the somewhat mucky water, but he didn't mind. He was here with Noodle and that was going to be the fun of it! He stopped directly next to her, toeing the water himself now. It noticed that there was a sudden drop in the water, a deep hole-like thing, and wondered what kind of weird fish were in there. Moving closer to it, he stopped as Noodle called his name.  
"Yes, lil love?"

"Sorry."

A grin similar to Murdoc's appeared on her face. Hands reached out and shoved 2D backwards, the man unable to catch himself before he found himself falling through the water and into the hole he had just noticed. He forced himself to bob up, gasping for air as he hit the surface. Noodle was standing there, laughing, rolling her eyes at the man as he flailed his arms uselessly.  
"Sorry, dullard! But we know your little secret and we're not going to let you do anything to distract our new weapon of mass destruction." Murdoc was now standing next to Noodle, hand around her shoulders. The girl was grinning from ear to ear, seemingly pleased with whatever was going on.  
"Wot, wot are you talking about?" 2D stuttered, gasping for air and spitting out water every time he would bob up. He flailed his arms more, desperate to try to stay above the water.

"We know about your little crush on Noodle!" Noodle cackled. "You can't like her because it'll distract her. Pirate activity is up and we need her to stay away from you and stay on watch!"

Murdoc sneered. "Exactly. You either give up your stupid crush and avoid Noodle like she's been avoiding you or I'll have the whale come outta that hole!" The Satanist took a swig of the bottle he was holding. "Make your choice, dullard. You don't have much time. You'll either drown, get eaten by a whale, or tell me you'll stay away from her! I'm not dying because you want some little girl, boy! We've already dealt with Noodle and she'll find out why later, but you first. You make the choice." Murdoc took a step into the water, grinning brightly. "You don't want your little Noodle to have a bad time here, too, do you?"

"We already cut up her clothes! I cut up her clothes and ruined her room!" The cyborg laughed. "We ruined it all up and told her it was pirate's! We can do more, you know! We can ruin everything for her!"

2D stared at Murdoc. Was he serious? How did he even know about anything? Sure it was always obvious that Noodle and him were close, even when she was younger, but now? He must have been getting in his head! He probably made a mind reading device! Panic ran through him and he wondered if he could hear what he was thinking now. Having dipped down into the water again, he flailed his arms back up to get up again. Spitting water out, he gasped and flailed his arms almost uselessly. Barely able to stay up top, he finally yelled out.

"Fine! Fine, yew fooker!"

Murdoc held his hand out for 2D's. The other man grabbed it, though shoved him away once he was able to stand. "And if yew touch Noodle, I'll fooking kill you."

Murdoc simply sneered. He shrugged in answer and motioned for the cyborg to follow him. "You won't get to kill me, dullard. You wouldn't even dare. The whale's going to be watching you again. If you tell Noodle, I'll feed you to it!"

"Bye, bye, Stuart!" the cyborg called. It turned and waved, smiling brightly at him. "I had a ton of fun today! Thanks for the date!"

2D sat down in the wet sand, sighing. "Bastard..." he mumbled. "Bastard!"


End file.
